After it was reported that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo got into a heated exchange with NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly and reportedly asked her to point to Ukraine on an unlabeled map, CNN’s Don Lemon dedicated a segment to the incident.
As the panel guests — former GOP strategist Rick Wilson and CNN contributor Wajahat Ali — discussed the incident, Wilson suggested that President Donald Trump could not find Ukraine on a map.
“[Pompeo] also knows deep within his heart that Donald Trump couldn’t find Ukraine on a map if you had the letter U and a picture of an actual physical crane next to it,” Wilson said.
The panelists started to lose it as Wilson described and impersonated his vision of a stereotypical Trump supporter and conservatives who are disdainful of individuals they deem to be “elitists.”
“Donald Trump’s the smart one — and y’all elitists are dumb!” Wilson said with a mock southern accent.
“You elitists with your geography and your maps- and your spelling!'” Ali added.
As they continued, Lemon broke down laughing so hard he teared up. Finally, he chimed in, “Rick, that was a good one. I needed that.”
Watch the exchange below:
"You elitists with your geography and your maps and your spelling…sipping your latte…" pic.twitter.com/qy1FVIY7fs
— Amee Vanderpool (@girlsreallyrule) January 28, 2020
After the video — which originally aired on Saturday — starting circulating on Twitter, conservatives ripped into the panel for mocking supporters of the president.
You consistently make fun of half the country and then complain that it is divided.
— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) January 28, 2020
The arrogance, mocking accents and smug ridicule of this nation’s ‘Real Elites’ is disgusting. https://t.co/p3RQzymx4s
The arrogance, the dismissiveness, the smug cackling, the accents.
— Steve Krakauer (@SteveKrak) January 28, 2020
If Donald Trump wins re-election this year, I’ll remember this brief CNN segment late one Saturday night in January as the perfect encapsulation for why it happened. pic.twitter.com/8kQ6zN9AZV
https://twitter.com/EWErickson/status/1222132040528728064
This is one of the most revolting things I’ve ever seen on CNN, and that’s saying a lot.
— Rep. Paul Gosar, DDS (@RepGosar) January 28, 2020
America, this is what the liberal media thinks of you: pic.twitter.com/51eBSjeTVR
More Proof that CNN is utter trash, and hates half the country.
— Kyle Kashuv (@KyleKashuv) January 28, 2020
Rick Wilson: those dumb southern guys liking trump hur durr durr
Don Lemon: laughing out of controlpic.twitter.com/y3U7Zaw8Sh
This is a MUST WATCH clip. @donlemon and his guests trash conservatives as illiterate hillbillies who can't figure out a map.
— Jessica O’Donnell 🏈 (@heckyessica) January 28, 2020
Never forget, THIS is what the liberal "elites" think of you. pic.twitter.com/dN6wu4eEIg
The most telling thing about the Don Lemon segment is no one commented on it when it aired. No one watched it.
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) January 28, 2020
The video caught the attention of Trump, who called Lemon, “The dumbest man on television (with terrible ratings!)”
Don Lemon, the dumbest man on television (with terrible ratings!). https://t.co/iQXCc7lvCt
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 28, 2020
Wilson responded to the criticism in a series of tweets, “They can’t stand anyone who punches back, and hope they can intimidate or shame me.”e
1/ The fundamental underpinning of the fake outrage is simple.
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) January 28, 2020
The MAGA world wants the freedom to attack, insult, demean, and abuse anyone who doesn’t aggressively worship Donald Trump.
They can’t stand anyone who punches back, and hope they can intimidate or shame me.
3/ Sorry. No participation trophies here for MAGAs.
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) January 28, 2020
They hope that they can shield their bad behavior, pathologies, willful ignorance, weaknesses, credulity, nature, and worship of Donald Trump behind a “how dare you talk down to me” anger without response.
The segment came after Pompeo had an interview with Kelly, which reportedly resulted in him yelling at Kelly after the interview for bringing up Ukraine — and asking her to identify Ukraine on a blank map.
“Do you think Americans care about Ukraine?” Kelly said Pompeo asked her after the interview, adding, “He used the F-word in that sentence and many others.”
In a statement, Pompeo ripped into Kelly for violating their agreement that the conversation would be off the record and suggested that she pointed to Bangladesh on the map.